Spy Hunter Especial

A long time ago in a decade where videogames were located in sweaty arcades and local liquid stores, a game by the name of Spy Hunter attracted gamers young and old. Reminiscent, perhaps, of James Bond's famous car chases in the movies, but giving players the ability to transform the car into a swift attack boat and back, Spy Hunter has remained a long-time gem.

Intent on bringing it back, in 2001 Midway delivered a 3D version that in many ways tapped into the old arcade's games sensibilities but brought new elements into the mix. Paradigm and then Angel Studios tried their hands at Midway's revived arcade racer, each with mixed success. Working with Terminal Reality (Aeon Flux, BloodRayne 1 and 2, 4X4 Evo 2) this year, Midway is working to try something new to revitalize the series. Bringing an out-of-the-car experience starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to the fold, Midway looks to give us all something quite different.

We spoke with Midway's Associate Producer Darren Walker, who worked on Shadow Hearts: Covenant, The Suffering, and RoadKill, to get a feel for the new game and how Midway is balancing that old classic feel with new-fangled gameplay.

IGN: Why did Midway decide to take the character out of the car? Doesn't this step farther away from the original idea of the arcade game Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run?

Darren Walker: Our goal was to add more elements and introduce a greater variety of gameplay to the Spy Hunter franchise. We felt giving Alex the freedom to get out of the car and roam around in a third-person environment was the next step that players expected and would like to explore. The Interceptor is still this high-tech killing machine, but you now get to see the man behind the wheel. The game hasn't changed its roots; it has just evolved to match player's expectations.

IGN: But how will Midway be able to retain the original concept and with all these new ideas infused into it?

Darren: Many of the original concept ideas remain the same; in fact probably more so than in previous versions. For example, this Spy Hunter will be bringing back the lateral combat tactic that was so prevalent in the original. Players will be able to ram and side-swipe enemy vehicles and shred their tires via the razor tire spikes.

Transform into the boat-terceptor...

IGN: Who's the developer and what is their experience like with action-racing games before?

Darren: The developer is Terminal Reality. They have done racing games from 4x4 EVO to RoadKill, so they have vast amount of experience with driving and combat genres. They also have much experience with the third-person character genres as well, as they were the developer on the Bloodrayne series.

IGN: What's the on-foot gameplay experience like? How are the guns handled? Are there puzzles, melee, perhaps some wrestling moves? Do we get the famous eyebrow gesture?

Darren: Many levels intertwine the driving with on-foot gameplay. So a typical scenario may force the player to stop the car, run into a building, fight enemies, and grab key codes that open up a canal bridge. The Rock definitely will be packing some heat, but we are also focusing in making sure that melee combat is just as forceful and rewarding to do. He will display a variety of combat and end with some awesome finishing moves. Having a dynamic personality like Dwayne in the game, players can feel assured they will see many "Rock" moments like the eyebrow gesture.

IGN: What's it like to have Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in the game? How did he contribute to the game's development and voice acting qualities?

Darren: We were absolutely thrilled that he wanted to be in the game. Dwayne's personality comes across very accessible and likeable on screen and he's exactly that way in person as well. The Interceptor has always been this high-tech "bad ass" vehicle, so teaming it up with The Rock seems very natural&#Array;not to mention unfair to the enemy. Dwayne has contributed tremendously to the project. He has done his own motion-capping and voice-overs for his character and contributed many gameplay ideas.